USDA releases Preliminary Grape Crush Report for California

SACRAMENTO, February 10, 2016 – The 2015 crush totaled 3,862,385 tons, down 7 percent from the 2014 crush of 4,144,534 tons. Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of all grapes crushed, at 2,037,083 tons, down 5 percent from 2014. The 2015 white wine variety crush totaled 1,662,159 tons, down 5 percent from 2014. Tons crushed of raisin type varieties totaled 92,432, down 41 percent from 2014, and tons crushed of table type varieties totaled 70,711, down 25 percent from 2014. The 2015 average price of all varieties was $667.31, down 10 percent from 2014. Average prices for the 2015 crop by type were as follows: red wine grapes, $783.58, down 12 percent from 2014; white wine grapes, $538.67, down 10 percent from 2014; raisin grapes, $247.52, up 6 percent; and table grapes, $252.63, up 8 percent.

In 2015, Chardonnay continued to account for the largest percentage of the total crush volume with 16.4 percent. Cabernet Sauvignon accounted for the second leading percentage of crush with 11.8 percent. The next eight highest percentages of grapes crushed included only wine grape varieties. Thompson Seedless, the leading raisin grape variety crushed for 2015, held 2.0 percent of the total crush.

Grapes produced in District 4 (Napa County) received the highest average price of $4,328.75 per ton, up 6 percent from 2014. District 3 (Sonoma and Marin counties) received the second highest return of $2,440.74, up 5 percent from 2014. The 2015 Chardonnay price of $785.87 was down 9 percent from 2014, and the Cabernet Sauvignon price of $1,302.74 was also down 9 percent from 2014. The 2015 average price for Zinfandel was $573.33, down 8 percent from 2014, while the Merlot average price was down 5 percent from 2014 at $738.08 per ton. The Preliminary Grape Crush Report includes all grape tonnage crushed during the 2015 season. It also includes purchased tonnage and pricing information for grapes with final prices prior to January 10, 2015. The March 10, 2016 Final Grape Crush Report will contain any late reports or corrections to the preliminary report. The entire Grape Crush Report is available online at www.nass.usda.gov/ca.